✧*̥˚ episode i *̥˚✧

"It's time to get started," Ariana stated, almost intimidatingly as she stood at the front of the fire pit, all of the islanders seated before her. "And as usual on Love Island, we're gonna get you guys coupled up." She continued, amidst the cheering that was going on from the group. "But this year, things are going to be a bit different." A small smirk tugged at her glossed lips as she watched how everyone's expressions turned into ones of confusion, small exclamations coming from a few. India and Leah shared a nervous look, linking their pinkies together as Ariana explained the rules.

"Before coupling up, the islanders will get to know each other with our game... Icebreakers." Iain Sterling stated.

"We're gonna play a game where you get to kiss each other first, and see if you're compatible before you make your decision about who to couple up with." India felt Leah's pinky tighten around hers as the rules were stated.

"Islanders must crack open an ice cube to retrieve a card containing a question, which they will answer, by choosing someone to kiss."

Kendall was first to go, seeming confident based on what India could read off of his body language. He picked up the hammer, and smashed the block of ice in one go, which impressed the tanned girl more than she'd like the admit. Ice floated over the wooden flooring of the fire pit as it shattered. 

"Sort of a 'try before you buy' scenario." Ariana narrowed her eyes, teasing the islanders before Kendall read his card. 

"'Kiss the islander you are most intimidated by.'" He read off, his gaze darting over the girls briefly before he made his way over to them. India's heartbeat accelerated beyond belief as Kendall held his hand out in front of her, causing the girls around her to yell out teasing encouragements. "Go get him bitch!" Leah yelled, causing her to turn around and flip her off playfully as Kendall lead them to the front of the fire pit. 

She swallowed harshly as he let go of her hand, and brought his up to cup the side of her neck. She wrapped her arms around his neck before their mouths met. 

It was rushed, but India sort of liked that. She enjoyed the way his tongue brushed over her bottom lip, almost as if he was begging for her to let him in, like she already had some unknown power over him, which only egged her on more. Her hands trailed down to his biceps, squeezing ever so slightly as his teeth lightly bit her lip that was locked between his. She tilted her head further to deepen the kiss, making it even hotter than it started off. His hand found its home on her hip, pulling her body closer to his.

India will admit, it was a nice kiss, a nice feeling of wanting being exchanged between them, but she felt no spark. The lack of electricity made her pull away first; but slowly, so not to hurt his feelings.

Cheers erupted from the seated islanders as they made their way back to their places on the curved couch. "Thanks gorgeous," Kendall rasped, as he parted from her completely. She giggled softly as she sat down in response, her cheeks feeling warm.

Her eyes briefly caught Rob's gaze before she quickly averted her own to Leah, who was giving her a teasing look, raising her eyebrows up and down in a suggestive manner. "That was steamy," she edged on, nudging India's shoulder. The tanned girl shrugged, only giving her a small smirk as she didn't want to share her thoughts on the boys too soon. 

It was JaNa's turn next, wasting no time in going right for destroying the ice. 

"'Kiss two islanders who give you green-flag vibes.' Whew!" She exclaimed softly, before glancing up at the line up of guys she had to choose from. She walked up enticingly, "Eeny, meeny, miney, moe." Her finger landed on Coye, who wore a sly smirk as he got up and stood next to her. "And you too, c'mon," she pointed to Rob, who took her hand and followed her to the front.

India felt her heart leap in her throat when she chose him. She knew she had no right to, but it was as if her body was screaming at her mind that it was okay what she was feeling. That it was okay that her body was fiening for more of his touch; even though they only shook hands, the feeling of his rough palm against hers sent shivers down her spine.

She didn't dare show her emotions, especially when Leah elbowed her side, with a small pout on her lips. "I like him." She mumbled defeatedly. India felt the knots in her stomach tighten, she paid no mind to it, as she placed her hand over Leah's and squeezed affectionately. 

Both of them tried not to make it obvious that they were uncomfortable with what was happening before them, their gazes wandering around the villa, trying to find something other than JaNa and Rob kissing to focus on. 

"This is such an advantage," Rob started out in his interview. "'cause we're getting to find things out that we would never get to find out just by looking at them; like what they taste like. And there's a couple girls I wanna get a taste of..." he trailed off, soon laughing at how ridiculous he sounded. "I'm so sorry."

Once JaNa was finished with Rob, he stood off to the side, as it was Coye's turn. He let his eyes roam over to the girl's side of the fire pit, his gaze locking with India's, as he smiled softly in her direction. She gave a small smile in return, a hint of sadness swimming in her eyes, before she broke away, her smile becoming more genuine as she cheered on JaNa and Coye.

"Oh my god, look at her go! Holy fuck," India exclaimed, an impressed expression on her face. Rob couldn't help but chuckle lightly at her words, noting how adorable she sounded when she cursed.

Once they pulled away, all three of them made their way back to the couch, JaNa looked as smitten as could be as she blushed lightly.

Next up, was Aaron, "'Kiss the islander you think would have the highest body count.' Wow, that's brutal," he winced, as he placed the card back and started walked towards the girls. "I'm just gonna say this now, I'm going to kiss this person not based on what the highest body count, just because I want to kiss them." 

He made his way over to Kaylor, which ended up being one of the hottest kisses of the whole challenge. JaNa, Serena, Leah, and India all squealed in excitement as they watched the two of them get lost in each other.

"That was like a twelve out of ten kiss, that was unreal." Aaron fangirled, still holding onto Kaylor's hands as they walked back to the bench. India nudged her should once she sat down next to her, the blonde could only shrug as a pink hue made itself known on the apples of her cheeks.

It was Kordell's turn, "'Kiss the islander who looks like a heartbreaker.'" The girls were excited as he made his way towards Serena, the two of them already looking like they were in a couple due to their matching hues of green that covered their clothing.

"'Kiss the islander who looks like a player.'" Serena read from the card, choosing to go for Coye. "It is about finding my couple, so I guess I'll kiss somebody different," she justified. India leaned forward, her eyes landing on JaNa's uncomfortable expression. 

Next, it was Rob, just hearing his fucking voice was making her breathing feel ragged, as she inhaled sharply, feeling the air expand her lungs before she quickly set it free. Sure, the reason she was here to make a connection, she just didn't enjoy that it was this soon, that her body was already reacting. She didn't enjoy the fact that her brain and its vessel were already at war, already committing war crimes against one another. It was too early.

"'Kiss the islander who gives you red-flag vibes.'"

India pretended not to feel hurt, not to seem hurt, not to show pain, as he extended his hand out towards Leah. If anything, she should be happy for the girl that she had already formed a friendship with. And she was, it was just those cursed, pesky emotions that were bickering back and forth between the walls of her skull.

She had no other choice but to watch as their mouths moved together in sync. Her wide eyes taking in every detail of how he moved, how he kissed; where he placed his hands to start out, and where they ended once things got heated, more intimate. God, she could almost feel the nonexistent ghost of his fingertips pressing into her hips. Nonexistent being the word that pains her the most in that sentence. 

But, being the strong woman her mother raised her to be, she shoved down her temporary and mistaken emotions, (or so she claimed), and cheered on Leah, knowing how much she wanted to kiss him in this challenge. The two smiled as they pulled away, Leah seeming blissful as she took her seat next to her once more. "That looked..." India trailed off, a knowing smirk on her glossed lips. The Persian smiled softly to herself, her mouth swollen and her pupils blown slightly, "Yeah," she breathed, flipping her hair over her shoulder.

It was now India's turn, as she wasted no time taking the hammer and chopping the block of ice into pieces. The feeling of the melted water landing on her skin soothed her, the hot, humid air of Fiji was almost suffocating. Or it could have something to do with a certain talent of hers; suppressing her emotions. 

"'Kiss the islander you are most attracted to.'" she read out loud, the thought of his lips on hers already running rampant within her mind. But she couldn't do that to Leah, not when they were already acting like they've know each other for years. 

She walked up towards the other boy who caught her eye; albeit not as significantly as Rob had. He briefly met her gaze, to which she averted quickly, her heart beating heavily in her chest. 

A small smirk tugged at her lips as she reached her hand out in Kordell's direction, causing the guys to yell out in an enticing manner. 

Her hand went up to cradle his jaw once they made in to the front of the fire pit in front of their fellow islanders, India being quick to connect their lips in an anticipating way. She wasn't lying to herself, she did find Kordell attractive, and he was one of the guys who she wanted to couple up with, but he wasn't the guy. But that was okay, for the sake of exploring connections. 

Much like Kendall, Kordell teased his tongue along her upper lip, begging for her to open wider to allow him in. India only smiled against his mouth, lightly biting his bottom lip and pulling it back slightly, before pressing against him once more. It was addicting, the feeling of being wanted, but she didn't feel anything. Nothing that left her speechless. Nothing that she truly wanted. Nothing that left her body yearning for more. 

His hands roamed down to rest on the curve of her ass, respectfully, which caused her giggle quietly into his mouth as they pulled away. Kordell planted a chaste kiss on the corner of her lips before they both made their way back to their respective seats around the fire pit. 

"Wow! That's a tough act to follow," Ariana teased, following with the fact that it was now Gabe's turn to break the ice. 

The blond man was prompted to kiss the islander who he think would give the best lap dance, leading him to making out with JaNa. 

After a few more rounds, Ariana spoke up, "All right, you've all had a chance to get to know each other better, and saliva has been shared. I love it." The girls laughed softly, India couldn't believe that she just made out with strangers. But, that's probably not the craziest thing she's going to have to do this summer. 

"Now, hopefully you've all had a better idea of who you want to couple up with or don't want to couple up with." Leah elbowed the curly haired girl's side, scrunching her nose in a teasing suggestion. "All right follow me."

They all followed their host to a line up of six heart shaped platforms, Ariana instructing the boys to each stand on one. "Okay, it's time to get coupled up for the very first time. And here's how it's going to work: girls, as you can see, the boys are each standing on a heart; when I say 'go', you're gonna head over and stand by the boy that you wanna couple up with." 

India and Leah shared a nervous smile; one of them knowing exactly who they want to go for, the other not having a single clue. 

"This could be based on someone you like the look of, someone you kissed in the game, anything you like. If any boy has more than one girl standing on his heart, he will get to choose which of them he wants to couple up with."

Hey eyes travelled to Rob, her stomach twisting in knots, his gaze feeling like it was consuming her as his tongue darted out to wet his lips quickly. 

God, it was night one and she already felt fucking awful. 

"All right girls, stand by your boy in three..." Ariana started to count down, which didn't help ease India's mind into thinking who she wanted to share a bed with tonight. 

"Two..."

"One..."

"Go!"

The tanned girl made her way towards Kendall, whose smile brightened as he saw her walk in his direction. She could only reciprocate it, her teeth glinting in the warm lighting of the villa. He extended his hand to help her up on the platform, then leaving it around her waist as she stood next to him. 

India looked over her should to see Leah standing next to Rob, knowing that's who the Persian was going for, she swallowed thickly, catching his eyes just briefly, before she turned back around and wrapped her arm around Kendall's torso, her fingers curling into the jacket of his soft blue suit, almost as if to keep herself grounded. 

He leaned down, his mouth close to her ear, "I was hoping you were gonna go for me." She let out a small giggle, her lips curling into a tight smile, "Well who were you expecting?" She quirked, burying her disappointment to the best of her current abilities. India was used to it, suppressing her emotions, she would rather see her friends happy than herself, their joy and excitement usually being enough to make it all worth it. 

Kendall's arm tightened around her waist, pulling her more into his side, as he placed a chaste kiss along the top of her head. She enjoyed the small affection, already hoping their couple would be strong enough to get her mind off the fucking snake wrangler that stood behind her.

"Holy shit, Coye's got three girls!" India whispered in surprise, watching as JaNa, Hannah, and Serena stared at the tall man with hearts in their eyes. But then she noticed Kordell standing alone, hurt obvious in his gaze as he tried to keep his spirits high. She looked past the couple that stood on the heart behind her, noticing that Gabe was in the same situation, except he looked nonchalant about it.

"All right Coye, let's start with you." Ariana started. "You have three gorgeous girls next to you; Hannah, JaNa, and Serena. How are you feeling?"

"Feeling overwhelmed." He stated, causing the group of islanders to let out a chuckle. "Does this happen to you a lot in the real world?" Ariana questioned playfully. He chuckled dryly, "Yeah it does." His words caused India to scrunch her nose in distaste, it was one thing to be confident, but it was another to admit you were a 'chick magnet'. 

One by one, the girls that stood on Coye's heart gave their reasonings to why they wanted to be coupled up with him. 

"Well, Coye you've made quite the first impression; you now have to decide which girl you want to couple up with, Hanna, JaNa, or Serena," Ariana pushed, the towering man waiting to give his answer, causing anticipation to rise. "Go with JaNa." Coye then listed out the attributes to her that made him want to be with her. 

Ariana then dismissed Hannah and Serena to sit on the bench until it was time to put the two of them into a couple. India hoped that both would be with good men tonight, wanting nothing less than the best for them. 

It was Kordell's turn, claiming that he was keeping his spirits high despite the fact that no girls were standing on his heart. India couldn't help but think that him and Serena should be together; their matching fabrics stating nothing other than fate.

Then it was Kaylor's turn to give her reasoning as to why she coupled up with Aaron. The lightskinned girl noticed how the two of them were holding hands behind his back, their fingers interlaced. Her heart clenched at the sight, a feeling that the two of them will be strong together.

"India, you chose to couple up with Kendall," her eyes landed on Ariana, having been so focused on her thoughts. She nodded nonetheless at her words, her fingers tightening around the expensive material of Kendall's suit even more, her knuckles turning white. "Why?" India inhaled deeply before she spoke, "Well when he picked me to kiss, it was like this immediate connection. And I love his energy thus far, it just kinda gravitated me towards him," she smiled up at him, his gaze meeting hers. "And his smile, it's just so welcoming and inviting and who am I to not couple up with him?"

Ariana matched her smile, "Kendall, how do you feel?" 

"I'm excited, she was the girl that caught my eye as soon as I walked into the villa, and she's an amazing kisser," he teased, causing India's cheeks to heat up. "She has a good vibe and I'm excited to see how our connection goes." Her heart swelled at his words, her mind not even wandering to Rob. 

Rob. 

"We have our third couple of Love Island twenty twenty four! India and Kendall!" Ariana announced, before moving on to the two that stood on the heart behind them. 

She didn't turn to look at the couple as they spoke, listening to their statements on each other was enough. Sure, India felt like she was a master at masking her emotions, but right now she didn't trust herself. 

As the night was starting to come to a close, Kordell chose Serena to couple up with— causing India to squeal softly into Kendall's shoulder in excitement for the two of them— which left Hannah and Gabe together by default. 

The atmosphere that domed over the villa was filled with love, and anticipation for what was ahead of them. A golden ball of passion swirled inside the islanders, but no matter how brightly the star shined, a moon was always destined to take over. 

PAIGE SPEAKS

chapter 2!! i'm so sorry this took longer to get out, but i'm making up for it with a double update... stay tuned mfs.

so excited for this story to take off!

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